Please make a donation to support Gunter's Space Page.
Thank you very much for visiting Gunter's Space Page. I hope that this site is useful and informative for you.
If you appreciate the information provided on this site, please consider supporting my work by making a simple and secure donation via PayPal. Please help to run the website and keep everything free of charge. Thank you very much.

Ekspress-AM 4, 4R

The Russian Satellite Communications Company (RSCC) has selected a team of Khrunichev
Space Center and Astrium to build the Ekspress-AM 4 communications satellite.

Ekspress-AM 4, to be delivered late 2010 and positioned at 80°E, is by far the largest
Express satellite ever ordered.

RSCC is focused primarily on the development of satellite communications and the
broadcasting network in the Russian Federation to secure the common information space
across the country. RSCC currently operates 11 satellites from 14°W to 145°E in
geostationary orbit, and is currently looking for high power satellites to complement the
existing fleet and fulfil growing needs for satellite capacity.

Express AM4 will use Astrium's Eurostar-3000
satellite design. The satellite will be delivered in orbit by Khrunichev Space Center
using the Proton launch vehicle. It will be equipped with a 63 active transponders
operating in L, C, Ku and Ka bands at a payload power of 14 kW for its planned 15-year
service life in orbit. Its ten antennas will provide high performance coverage over the
Russian Federation and the CIS countries and its steerable antennas can be used to provide
communication to any point within the satellite's visibility.

After launch, the contact with the Briz-M upper stage and the satellite was lost after the fourth of five ignitions. Although contact with the satellite was established, it was stranded in a usless orbit. It was deceided in March 2012, that Ekspress-AM 4 will be deorbited at the end of this month.

RSCC ordered in 2012 an identical replacement, Ekspress-AM 4R for a launch in 2013. It was also lost in a launch failure.